When God promised to spare Sodom if there were ten righteous people, what did He mean? Who counts as righteous?
In a conversation between Abraham and the Lord recorded in Genesis 18:23-33, Abraham repeatedly lowers the threshold for canceling the destruction of Sodom. If the Lord can find 50 righteous people, will He spare the city? What about 45? On it goes, with the Lord each time agreeing to the new number until Abraham reaches ten. It’s unclear why he doesn’t go further. Maybe he thought that was all he could ask, or maybe he believed there must be at least ten righteous people. After all, his nephew Lot lived there with his family.
But the conversation assumes a binary conception of righteousness. Can you divide the world, or even the city of Sodom into two categories of people: righteous or wicked? Does anyone in the city perfectly merit either label? Evil was rampant in the city, but surely not all of its inhabitants were equally depraved. How could the Lord identify ten righteous people in a diverse city full of imperfect individuals?
The answer is surprisingly simple: Send messengers, and see who is willing to listen. Two angels visited Lot with a stark message:
Hast thou here any besides? son in law, and thy sons, and thy daughters, and whatsoever thou hast in the city, bring them out of this place:
For we will destroy this place, because the cry of them is waxen great before the face of the Lord; and the Lord hath sent us to destroy it.
Genesis 19:12-13
Lot tried to convince his sons, his married daughters, and his sons in law. In the end, only four people were receptive to the message: Lot, his wife, and two of his daughters. After they left, the city was destroyed (Genesis 19:15-26).
A parallel story in the Book of Mormon shows a similar pattern. After being ejected from the city of Ammonihah, Alma was ready to move on. But an angel sent him back with a warning: “Except they repent the Lord God will destroy them” (Alma 8:16).
Alma returned and immediately found a receptive listener. Amulek recognized him as a prophet and welcomed him into his home, just as Abraham and Lot had welcomed heavenly messengers before the destruction of Sodom (Alma 8:19-21). Subsequently, many people in the city “did believe on his words” (Alma 14:1). Some of them were cast out. Others, including many women and children, were burned to death by city authorities (Alma 14:7-8). Shortly after, when everyone who believed Alma had either been banished or executed, a Lamanite army attacked the city. “Every living soul of the Ammonihahites was destroyed…. Behold, in one day it was left desolate” (Alma 16:9-10).
Alma may have believed that his mission was redemption, but it turned out to be extraction. Find those who will listen and get as many of them out of the city as possible, before it’s too late.
The shared imagery of fire and brimstone reinforces the connection between these cities. Genesis records that “the Lord rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire” (Genesis 19:24). Alma warns the people of Ammonihah that those who don’t repent will suffer torments “as a lake of fire and brimstone” (Alma 12:17). The city leaders later taunt Alma and Amulek as they burn the righteous: “After what ye have seen, will ye preach again unto this people, that they shall be cast into a lake of fire and brimstone?” (Alma 14:14).
The strongest parallel is the Lord’s willingness to seek the righteous—those who will heed His servants—even in the most wicked of cities.
The author of Genesis had previously defined righteousness in terms of responsiveness. When God assured Abraham that his descendants would be as numerous as the stars, “[Abraham] believed in the Lord; and [the Lord] counted it to him for righteousness” (Genesis 15:6). Abraham wasn’t perfect, and neither were Lot or Amulek, but they were counted among the righteous because they were humble and teachable.
Today, I will be responsive to the Lord’s servants. I will strive to understand, remember, and follow the invitations I have received from church leaders, knowing that my willingness to listen and follow is the measure of my righteousness.
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